Pups helping Orlando nightclub shooting survivors heal

The key to processing the tragedy ‘is to be able to share it.’
- byLivia Gamble

Jun
2016

Facebook/LCC K-9 Comfort Dogs

In the wake of the Orlando nightclub shooting, a pack of 12 golden retrievers is helping the community heal.

K-9 Comfort Dogs are providing hugs and kisses to survivors and those who are grieving after a gun man killed 49 people and another 53 in what has been described as the he worst mass shooting in the U.S.

‘Your blood pressure goes down when you pet a dog, you feel more comfortable, and people end up talking,’ LCC Comfort Dogs president Tim Hetzner told ABC News America.

Speaking to CBS News, Hetzner said the key to processing the tragedy ‘is to be able to share it.’

Recalling an interaction with a night club survivor, whose friend died in the shooting, and one of the dogs, Hetzner said, ‘He didn't talk to anyone.’

‘He just stood there. And then slowly, he got down and started petting the dog... And then he started asking one or two questions about the dog, and then said, “You know, I lost my friend.” And then he explained what had happened.’